From This Day On
by Herondales and Salvatores
Summary: A modern day story about Tessa and Will, no such thing as the shadowhunters. Will is the new kid at school, but how did he find out about Tessa's deep dark secret? What will Tessa do to make sure no one else finds out? Wessa, but not cannon straight away...
1. Chapter 1

Story - From This Day On

I sigh and take a sip of my coffee before slinging my second hand, black leather jacket onto the back of my chair. I slide into the chair with an 'oomph' and boot up my computer, only to end up waiting impatiently as it whirled into existence. I quickly get out the work that needs to be done today and switch the phones over, so it no longer goes straight to the answering machine. Just as my computer is finally ready, the phone rings. I pick it up expertly and take a breath, "Welcome to Shadowhunter Real-estate, this is Tessa speaking."

At around midday, after my work is done, I look around to take in the familiar surroundings. The office was small and cozy, painted in a light coffee color that was traditional in most office places. I was sitting at a two-person desk out the front. It is currently cluttered with little stacks of paper that I have been using throughout the day. My computer is extremely old, the big box computers that went out of fashion twenty years ago, and it works just as nicely as it looks. I look out the window, which has been divided into little windows to accommodate the pictures of the properties that were currently for sale, and I begin to wish that something interesting would happen today. Every Saturday I work at this real estate agency. My Aunt Harriet is one of the sales agents of the agency, and she was able to convince the owner to let me work on Saturdays. Luckily Saturdays were usually pretty quiet anyway. Aunt Harriet is currently out, along with everyone else, at open homes and appointments. She is trying to sell houses so that we will be able to pay the bills. There is no one else in the office at the moment, and the only noises to be heard are my humming along to the radio, and the tap of my fingers on the keyboard.

I stand up, still humming and wander down the back on the office. Looking down the empty office my eyes came to settle on the little kitchenette. I walked up to the counter taking in the little room that was filled to the brim with coffee, tea and sugar. I get out an empty cup, spoon in a couple of spoonful's of coffee and fill it to the brim with boiling water. I brush my hair away from my face as the smell of coffee swirls around me. I take my time as I head back to the front counter, making sure not to spill any of the coffee on myself. I round the corner just as a group of four people enter the office. I hastily slide into my seat, hiding my freshly made cup of coffee from sight and smile before asking "How can I help you?". There is a small, petite woman, almost child-size. At the base of her neck is a hastily made bun, with wisps falling out framing her face. She's pretty but plain. Even so there is a calm, kind look on her face, one that is usually being worn by mothers. Next to her, they are arm in are, is a man, tall and lanky with bright untidy red hair and hazel eyes. A little further off is a boy, near my age standing with a curious look in his eyes. He was tall and slender but that wasn't the interesting thing about him, both his eyes and hair were a startling grey-silver. It was as though the color had faded from his hair and eyes. There was a fourth person who entered but I am not able to make out their features. As he now stands looking away, gazing out the window, hands clasped behind his back. The only thing I am able to make out is his midnight black hair, hanging tousled and messily styled, as if he just got out of bed. The women is looking at me with a nervous smile, "Hi, We are actually here to pick up the keys for -" She started, but was cut off abruptly when my Aunt Harriet stormed in from around the corner, a bright smile on her face. She was jingling some keys in her hand. "Charlotte! Henry! I was hoping you would come in today. I have picked up the keys for you already," She voiced as she walked up to the group, shaking hands with Charlotte and the red headed man who I now assume is Henry. Charlotte gave her a gracious smile and they begin to chat about when they would be moving in and what not. I zoned out and sent off an email to one of the staff just as they walked out the door. I waved goodbye and gave a thin smile, not really paying attention.

Aunt Harriet left once again, to go to another appointment as soon as Charlotte, Henry and the boys were gone, now leaving the office and me alone once again. Just as I picked up the mug of now luke warm coffee and took a grateful sip, a boy pushed open the door as he grumbles to himself. I look up in shock, the cup midway to my mouth. The boy is now standing in front of me. Tangled black hair framed his face and elegant cheekbones, he had a full luscious mouth and long, thick lashes that covered his eyes that were blue like glass. Even the curve of his throat was perfect, just showing under the plain black shirt that was hugging his muscles nicely. I mentally shook my head, clearing it from unwanted thoughts. I look down hastily to see that I'm still holding my coffee cup, and quickly place it out of sight. I look up at him expectantly, trying not to loose myself in his gaze watching him smirk at me. "I thought I smelt coffee," he comments. Only now did it click in my mind that he was the faceless, midnight black haired person I saw before with Henry and Charlotte. I look at him bewildered. Why was he back again? He sees my confused look and quickly adds, "In her haste to speak to the sales agent, Charlotte forgot to grab the keys to our new house." He looks around, searching for the keys, both our gazes settle on the keys that Aunt Harriet had left before. I reach out planning on handing the keys to him, but just as my hand touches them I feel a spark of electricity and realize he had also reached for them at the same time, which caused our hands to lightly brush against one another. I quickly withdraw my hand, letting him grab the keys. He has a curious look on his face and starts to head out the door. Just as he's opening it though, he looks back at me, letting the cold air whoosh, sending a slight shiver down my spine.

"I never caught your name Miss -?" He begins

His voice startles me out of my thoughts,

"Gray. Tessa Gray." I declare with a shy smile.

He shoots me a grin, "Pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Miss Tessa. I'm sure we'll meet again," he states before rushing off.

Only now do I realise I never caught his name.


	2. Chapter 2

From This Day On

Chapter Two

Previously:

He shoots me a grin, "Pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Miss Tessa. I'm sure we'll meet again," he states before rushing off.

Only now do I realise I never caught his name.

I finish switching the phones over and turning the message bank on for the night. Just as it turns 5.00 o'clock, I receive a text from Aunt Harriet.

'_Hey Hun, I'm not able to take you home this afternoon. You will need to walk, as I have an appointment. Sorry sweetheart, will see you later during the week._'

I sigh, glad that I brought my jacket and scarf this morning. I pull them on, and make sure to cover every inch of my skin. It's only a fifteen-minute walk home, but England being the country it is, the weather had started to turn very wintery, so it was quite chilly. I lock up the office and head down the street making sure to keep my head down, trying to at least block some of the wind from hitting my face.

I quickly take a peek at my surroundings, to make sure I'm in no danger of walking into anything or anyone. The sun is set deep over the buildings, casting long shadows as the sky becomes darker, signaling that the night is near. Trees dot the lane, their leaves absent since autumn. As I turn down my narrow street I glance up again to look at the little houses, neatly lined up like soldiers. Our street is a combination of old and new buildings, mix-matching the elderly, broken down houses that have with weeds and over growth, with the new, sparkly clean houses that are often larger in size. I cross the road as I near my home and take in its scattered weeds and overgrown hedge. My gaze comes to settle on our little mustard yellow house. It looks homey, but slightly broken down. If you were to by chance peek in through the window you would see two very different personalities fighting for control.

If I had it my way, the house would practically be a library; the place is filled to the brim with books and novels. The books are old and new, some had come to join my collection simply because I'd forgotten to return them to the library. Others were birthday presents from distant Aunts and Uncles. Books where everywhere, most of them were only half finished because I'd had a sudden urge to read something new. The bookmarks ranged from anything to everything, a simple dog-ear, a feather or a spoon. Anything that I could get my hands on at the precise moment I needed it.

On the other hand my brother had a very different idea when it came to our home. If he could have it his way, the place would be a garbage tip with a few gambling tables on the side. Beer bottles littered the area, some of which where still half full and tilted on their side. He had no love for this home and couldn't care less if he trashed it.

I step up to my front door and see a flicker of movement out the corner of my eye. I whip my head to the side, trying to get a better look, and see a moving truck driving away, around the corner. But that isn't what's caught my eye. I see a flash of pale grey-silver hair walk into the house next to mine. Now, that is odd considering the house next to mine has been vacant for the past year. I guess it was going to be sold at some stage. I shrug and twist open the front door, flinching as a loud creek resounds throughout the house. I enter as quietly as I can, tip toeing through the door and closing it quietly behind me. I stick to the walls, trying to make sure I haven't been heard.

"Tessie? Is that you?" I hear Nate's voice echo into the quiet house and shrink away from it. It almost sounded as though he cared. Which was wrong. Ever since our parents died, he had blamed me.

I was just 12 years old when I finally convinced my parents to take me to my first poetry reading. Nate had stayed home. On the way there, as I chatted excitedly with my parents about what type of poetry would be shown, a drunk driver came out of nowhere and ran head-on into the front of our car, killing both my parents instantly. I was rushed to the hospital where Nate had met me. He was filled with anger, I could see it in his eyes. But at that age, I hadn't understood. The judge ruled that because Nate was almost 17 we didn't need an adult to stay with us. Aunt Harriet just had to check in with us on a weekly basis. Nate had quickly turned to alcohol and gambling as a way to cope. At the time, I didn't think that would be much of a problem.

Only a year later, I accidentally broke a vase and the green glass shattered all around me. I looked up in shock at Nate's angry face, and his fist connected with my head. He punched me, over and over, giving me a split lip and several bruises that covered my body. All his pent up anger from the last year was released, directly at me. It was because of me that my parents had died, and this was my punishment. He left me lying on the floor, surrounded my broken glass and blood. When I could move again, I slowly cleaned up the mess and had a painful shower as I tried to clear my wounds of glass that remained embedded in my skin. When I went back to my room, Nate was sitting on my bed. He stood up and stalked towards me. I shrank back in fear as he told me that if anyone found out about what had just happened, he would kill me. And I believed him. I still do. Over time it's has been getting worse. Any little thing that I do wrong results in a beating. He quickly learnt that if outsiders could see the marks and bruises on my skin, they would ask questions, so he now he makes sure no one can see them.

I snap out of my thoughts when I hear the shuffling of feet, "Sorry I was late," I say, "Aunt Harriet had an appointment so I had to walk home." I shrug off my jacket and I head towards my bedroom. He rounds the corner and stops me.

He takes a step closer and I can smell alcohol on his breath. He leans down to my ear and whispers, "Not good enough." Then he slaps me hard across the face, knowing that tomorrow was Sunday and I wouldn't see anyone.

I back away from him, but when my back hits a wall I know I'm screwed. My eyes open wide with terror as I fell his iron grip on my arm. His fingernails dig deep into my skin, breaking the surface and making trickles of blood seep from the wounds. He punches me hard into the stomach, and I fall to the ground clutching my stomach, trying to suck in a breath. He clutches my hair in his hand causing me to gasp out loud. By this point I'm trying not to cry out and bite down hard onto my lip. I taste blood, and try not to sob.

"You're worthless," He whispers into my ear before dropping me onto the ground. With one final kick to my stomach, he walks of calmly. I hear the noise of the television turning on, letting me know that he was finished for the time being.

I roll onto my back with a whimper and try to get up, but with little success. I slowly hobble around the house, sliding along the wall, because I can't hold myself upright. Finally I crash into my room and with shaky hands, I lock the door before leaning up against it for a quick breather. Eventually I stumble over to my window, and with a groan I push it up and let the cool air blow in. It takes me less than a minute to decide that I need to get out. I climb through the window and loose my balance. I fall from the windowsill and land on the ground hard. A small yelp escapes me before I bite down on my lip again and heave myself up off the grass. I make my way of our property and head down the street with only one place in park.

**_Authors Note: _**Please review, tell me what needs to be fixed and how to make it better. I will respond to peoples comments at the bottom. I have already written the next chapter so I will be posting it soon, and yes we will meet this mysterious black haired sexy beast in the next chapter.

bow down to me peasants: Haha yes this is a wessa fanfic. Are you happy I wrote more?

Bre Renee: Thank you for your comment, I have taken it into consideration and hopefully this chapter is better formatted (?) As this is my first story I have been having a little bit of trouble with the formatting, but I was hoping for some constructive criticism and this has really helped. Again thanks :)

Foxface'sSpecialPie: Haha I don't know, is it? *smirk

_Ciao_


	3. Chapter 3

From This Day On

Previously

I fall from the windowsill and land on the ground hard. A small yelp escapes me before I bite down on my lip again and heave myself up off the grass. I make my way of our property and head down the street with only one place in mind. 

The park.

Chapter Three

The park is always the place I head to when things at home get really bad. I usually escape through my window and some times the front door before heading down to the park. It isn't anything like Central Park in New York, but it still has its little trails that help you get lost when you're running away from something. I normally wonder around the park for a couple of hours or until it gets dark, then I would slowly make my way back home, making sure to stay away from the areas that the homeless people were attracted to.

I shiver as a gust of wind rushes past me and instantly regret that I didn't bring a jacket. I round a corner and suddenly the park stood before me, tall and oddly calming. I make my way towards it, no longer watching where I'm going, hoping that I get lost.

I wonder around for the next half hour, taking comfort in the fact that the trees are blocking some of the wind from reaching my shivering body. It's dark now, as the moon is hidden behind a cloud. I walk into a little open area that is void of any trees. I keep walking as I look down at my wrist; trying to see what time it is on my watch. Just as I begin to look up once more, I run into something hard and warm. It's a person.

"S-sorry" I stutter and take a quick step back just as the moon breaks through the clouds, lighting up the area we were in. The first thing I notice are the startling blue eyes. Oh God. It's him.

"I know I'm attractive and all, but stalker much?" He snaps at me after noticing who I am and taking in my appearance.

I lift my chin up and with a glare I reply, "I could say the same to you." I turn around; planning on heading back home, it was pretty late anyway.

I suddenly feel a hand on my bruised arm, and gasp in pain. I turn around and wrench my arm out of his grasp, hugging it to my chest. My eyes open wide with fear and I step back from his shocked look, "Don't fucking touch me," I seethe.

He puts his arms up in the air, surrendering. I see him look from my face to my arm repeatedly. I also look down at my arm and see bruises showing through my thin white blouse and dried blood clotted on the cloth. I subtly hide my face behind my hair, hoping he doesn't see the hand print that would be showing from my last 'encounter' with Nate.

"What happened to you?" He whispers. I shake my head and turn away, hurrying down the trail that leads me back to my street; I hear the crunch of leaves behind me and sigh in frustration.

"And you called me the stalker," I mutter as he comes to walk level to me. I glance up at his face and see an amused expression play on his features, that definitely made him look much more attractive, I blush and look away, grateful that it was dark and he could not see my face well.

We walk in silence for the next 15 minutes, until we exit the park, which is now illuminated by the street lamps. "Which way are you heading?" He asks. I simply point down the road we are on, to where my street started.

He smirks sexily and heads down that way as well, quickening his pace so I am left behind, "Wait," I call, jogging to catch with to him, "Where are you going?" I ask in confusion.

He looks at me, "Same place," he responds with a wink, "Your place." My eyes open wide in shock, I take a cautious step away from him without leaving the path.

"I'm joking," He explains, "My house is down that street as well." Dammit, he'd given me a mini heart attack. I shake my head, but continue down the road with him by my side. I take a side long glance at him, watching as he walks casually, hands in his tight, black skinny jean pockets. The same top that I saw him in before was on as well. He catches me looking and winks. I quickly look away from him, trying to convince my face to stop blushing, now that the street lamps could clearly show the blush that was sitting high on my cheeks. We walk down our street and slowly draw closer to my home. I unconsciously slow down, trying to delay my arrival as long as possible.

He obviously notices because he also slows his pace, taking his time. "So, uh, which place is yours?" I question awkwardly, trying to make small talk. He points to a spot near my house. As we get closer still, I realise he's exactly next door.

"Guess we are neighbours then," I mutter as he looks at me, eye-brow raised questionably. We continue down the street and I stop in front of my place. I stand there for a moment and he continues a little bit to stand in front of his. We stand there looking at each other for a moment before he smiles.

"See ya later Tessa," He calls out, heading up his stairs onto his porch. His hand reaches to open the door.

"Wait!" I call out. He turns and looks at me expectantly.

"I never caught your name," I say. He grins before responding.

"My dear Tessa," He says, "I thought you would never ask. My name is Will." With that he enters the house and closes the door behind him.

I sigh and walk around the side of my house, climbing up and into my window, leaving it open to let the cool air enter my room. I collapse onto my bed after quickly getting changed into my pj's, just a simple pair of thick fluffy pants, and a singlet.

Little did I realize that across from my house, directly opposite my window, a light flickered on showing that a dark haired boy was also getting changed and ready for bed. Unlike me, he simply wore a pair of shorts, and no shirt even though it was cold. He fell onto his bed gracefully, pulled open a book and began to read.

**Authors Note: **Hey everyone, how are you all doing? Good? Anyway how do you think this chapter has turned out? Have I gotten Will's personality on the ball or does it need some work? Tell me and I will try and fix it trust me :)

Now I have something exiting planned but I need to quickly decide, should Magnus be a history teacher or an english teacher? Tell me in the comments below :)

Have an awesome day

Thanks for the reviews and I am glad you all like the story. And yes, Foxface'sSpecialPie I agree we aren't meant to put spoons into books, but I'm sure Tessa does not leave them for that long. :)

**Ciao**


	4. Chapter 4

From This Day On

Previously:

Little did I realize that across from my house, directly opposite my window, a light flickered on showing that a dark haired boy was also getting changed and ready for bed. Unlike me, he simply wore a pair of shorts, and no shirt even though it was cold. He fell onto his bed gracefully, pulled open a book and began to read.

Chapter Four

Sunday came and went with nothing too exiting happening. Nate was out half of the day, gambling our money away. When he came home I avoided him, opting to stay in my room, catching up on books that I had not yet finished. At one point during the day I heard a loud male laugh come from the neighboring home, and when I looked across, I saw nothing but a shadowy figure just out of sight by the opposing window. Though, what I could tell was that he was holding a book in his hand. I smile wondering who it could have been and glad that someone else shared my interest of books.

'_I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones_

_Enough to make my systems blow_

_Welcome to the new age, to the new age_ —'

I bolt up from my bed as my alarm blares my favorite song, Radioactive, from its speakers. I run across the room stumbling half blind as my eyes are closed to slits. The sun light is streaming in through my open window, illuminating the space, hurting my newly-awoken eyes.

"Shitshitshit," I curse as I stagger around. I slam my hip into my bedpost and with a groan of pain, I finally slide the unlock button on my phone, turning the alarm off. I savor the sweet silence that this simple gesture brings. I take in a deep breath, now looking at my clock, and notice that it is now 6:05 am and it's time to get ready for my first day back at school after the mid-year holidays.

I hobble out of my room still half asleep after making my bed, and head to the shower. I quickly wash my hair and my body, before spritzing on my favorite woody perfume. Suddenly, I realize something.

"Damn it," I mutter, I had forgotten to grab clothes to change into. I sigh and wrap my towel tightly around myself, tucking it in so I don't have to hold it. My damp hair hangs down in wet strands as I pad back down the hallway, into my room. I walk across the clean room, shivering slightly as I pass my open window. I begin humming quietly, and start sorting through my drawers looking for a clean, nice looking pair of bra and matching panties. I see a flicker of movement through my window. My head snaps up and my eyes dart across to the window, only now noticing that I was standing in front of it in nothing but a towel. My stormy grey eyes turn wide with shock as I am faced with something very unlikely and unsuspected.

There, standing before me is him, stretching, drawing his muscles taught as his arms lift above his head. My eyes involuntarily travel down his body. He is packed with muscle, though not like a body builder. My eyes can't believe what they are seeing. They travel down his chest and across his six pack, I almost can't keep in a small gasp as I see a pair of 'v' lines that lead below his black jeans that hang low on his waist, showing a sliver of his boxer briefs. My eyes snap back to his face, taking in his black bedraggled hair and amused expression as our eyes lock; his startling blue against my stormy grey. Only then do my thoughts shout out to me that I am still in a too small coffee brown coloured towel that barely reaches past my butt. My wet hair is messily fanned out over my body, letting little droplets of water run down my neck and back. I blush a deep red and before he can shout out a remark through our open windows, I quickly pull across my curtain. Since both our windows are still open, I can hear him chuckling.

I quickly pull on the bra and panties I was holding before; they are a light crème with coffee colored lace covering them. I pull on a pair of blue skinny jeans and a light crème figure-hugging woolen jumper with long sleeves. I rush to the bathroom and quickly towel dry my hair, deciding to leave it hanging down in a light wave of brown. I apply a light coat of foundation over my face, just needing it to cover up a couple few pimples and discoloration.

I check my clock as I head back into my room. My eyes open wide as I realise I needed to be out of the house right this minute. I pull aside my curtain letting the natural light back into my room, closing the window with a bang. I race around my room, chucking books and P.E. clothes in my shimmery brown tote bag before throwing on a bangle and a pair of earrings. I bolt out the door, only just managing to grab my house keys, phone and ankle boots before I'm on my way.

As I walked down the pathway, I bend down to shove my sock clad feet into the ankle boots, once they're comfortable on, I plug in my ear buds and block out the world. I make my way down the street, oblivious to the startling blue eyes that are watching me lip-sync to the song.

I finally make it to the gates of my school. The large arc overhead towers above me with the swirling letters of 'The Institute' twisting down in mock humor. People who have never been to this school usually misinterpret it as a school made special for the mentally challenged, rather than just a normal private school that housed the usual cliques. Aunt Harriet was able to get me into this school after my parents died. The fact that she knew everyone who was able to pull a few strings in order to get my education straight was a real bonus. Though the cool thing about this school is that all of the teachers try to treat us as equals. One of the oddities of the school was that they decided all of the teachers would be called by their first names. This was to help us feel more 'at home' with the school.

I walk through the halls making my way down towards the only destination on my mind. My locker. The white halls are bustling with people already, splashes of bright colors clashed against each other as many of them embraced after not seeing one other in such a long time. Well, in actual fact, it was only a term break, but I suppose that feels like a long time. As I finally reach my locker, a familiar sight confronts me. My best friend stands before me. Her slender figure is slouched up against my locker and her dark hair fans out around her. Her luminous hazel eyes bore into my face and I can see the slight tilt of her head. She'd perfected that tilt so long ago, simply to hide a long, silver scar that runs from the left corner of her mouth to her temple. She comes from a broken home, similar to mine, where her father gets drunk. One time she tried to get in-between him and his beer bottle. That's when the knife came out.

"Sophie," I say as a big grin spreads across her face. She quickly closes the distance between us and gives me a tight hug, knowing that after the first few death gripping hugs she has given me she should not try it again. Most of the time, even though she didn't know it, I was often wearing large, discolored bruises under my skin. And even though she had suspected something was going on, she'd never broached the subject, knowing that if I wanted her to know, I would tell her.

I listen to her chat away about her holidays as I unload my bag of into my locker, also adding some P.E. clothes because I have it today. I flinch as someone calling my name over the loudspeaker rudely interrupts us.

"Not even here for five minutes and you're already in trouble," Sophie commented, "You've changed." I smile apologetically before rushing away to find out what's going on.

I hurry down the hallway and slam through the doors of the administration office. I stomp up to the front office with a slight glare, speaking before the young secretary had a chance.

"If this is about that one time I broke into school after hours, I swear," The sentence started out serious, but as I continued, I switched to a joking tone, "I did not set the math room on fire." The secretary looked at me and laughed. Before I have a chance to ask her why I'd really been called to the office, I am interrupted by a deep chuckle that sounds oddly familiar. I whip my head around, trying to see who had laughed and my hands clutch the desk's edge as I face someone tall, and definitely familiar.

"Will," I say, cocking an eyebrow looking him up and down. I notice he is in the same jeans he was wearing this morning, but now its paired with a shirt that is three different shades of grey, light to dark, top to bottom. Over that was a simple black jacket with its sleeves pulled up to his elbows. His hands are in his pockets and he looked as though he was about to make some rude remark regarding what happened this morning. Mischief twinkles in his eyes but just as he opens his mouth, he's interrupted by the secretary.

"Great, you know each other already," She said, "Tessa could you please show these three new students where their lockers are, and show Mr Herondale to his first class." She hands me Will's timetable, and I groan inwardly when I see that he's in practically all the same classes as me. I momentarily realise that the secretary said 'them'. As I chew on my lip I look behind Will and notice the silver haired boy that I'd seen once before, in the real-estate office, and a girl. By the looks of things, she's probably a year younger than me. She's almost ridiculously pretty and with fair hair, soft brown eyes and a creamy complexion.

"What years are the others in?" I question the secretary as I face back towards her, feeling Will's eyes on my back as I am handed their locker numbers, and the other two are handed their timetables. I pass Will's to him.

"Well James Carstair's is in Year 12, William, as you know is in Year 11 with you, and Jessamine Lovelace is in Year 10." I nod upon hearing this information and lead the trio out of the office, watching as they take in their surroundings. I quickly show them their lockers and take Jessamine and James to their first classes. Now I'm left with Will and as I take him to his locker, I can't help but shrink under the gaze of the rest of the school. Especially the girls as they practically swoon at Will. He doesn't exactly help the situation when he winks at a couple of them, causing a cluster of girls to fall into a fit of giggles and chatter.

"Can you not," I say elbowing him as he shoot an especially dazzling smile to another bunch of females from our grade. He looks down at me and cocks an eyebrow, but he continues to smirk.

"Jealous, dear?" He questions, I shoot him a glare, but can't hide a light blush that starts to flush my cheeks. I look at one of the lockers, and realise that we've just walked past his. I back up a few steps and stop.

"There's your locker," I point, before turning away and stating to head off to get the books I will need for my upcoming class.

"Wait!" I hear him call out stopping me in my tracks, "I don't know where my class is?" he asks innocently, a small pout on his full lips.

I sigh in frustration, rubbing my hand over my face, "Fine, but you have to come with me and get my books," I respond walking back to him. I lean against the locker next to his and wait for him to finish organising his supplies. He looks down at his timetable and frowns.

"English," He says, pulling the sheet closer to his face and squinting, "With Mr Bane?"

"Magnus," I correct him as he closes his locker. I lead him around the corner to where my locker is located, "We call all of our teachers by their first names."

He looks at me as though I'm odd.

"It's weird I know," I comment as I open my locker and try to ignore his studious gaze while I grab my English books.

"Oh, and we have P.E today," I add, "So I hope you brought something to change into," I close my locker and charge off to class, Will by my side.

"Oh, wouldn't you like to see me change," He says seductively, getting in front of me and walking backwards to see my reaction, smirking all the while.

I roll my eyes, "From what I saw this morning, it doesn't seem that special," I remark, lying blatantly through my teeth.

"I liked you better with only a towel," He replies, ignoring my comment, "Want to fix that for me?" He gestures to my outfit.

"In your dreams," I say, rounding the corner and opening the door to the English room, cutting him off before he could add another come back.

"Ah, Tessa, so nice of you to join us," Magnus smiles as we enter the room. I return the smile as I take in what our teacher is wearing. He's in an elaborate suit that is kept simple, with one exception, the collar of his jacket is sprinkled with glitter and studs. I smile at his familiarity, his hair is like rough black silk, so dark it has a bluish sheen to it, the tips are sparked up with a splurge of glitter on a few of their ends. His skin is brown and the cast of his features resembles a foreign heritage. In one ear he has a silver loop from which dangles a diamond pendant the size of a finger, which sparkles brilliantly under the commercial lights. Though what makes me grin the most is the contacts that he always wears. They are gold-green with slit pupils, like the eyes of a cat.

"Magnus," I respond, walking into the room, watching as his eyes open slightly as Will follows me in.

"I see you brought the new kid with you as well," He comments, looking over Will, assessing him the only way Magnus could. After a moment of the two males staring each other off, Magnus breaks eye contact and looks around the room. I do the same, noticing that there is a distinctive difference this term then there was last term.

"I have decided, after careful consideration that I will pair each person off with someone of the opposite sex," He declared. In other words, he paired off people who he thought were compatible together, he was always one trying to set people off, and in class he made sure that his favorite pairs were always together. My eyes settled on Sophie, who was sitting at the back of class, grinning at me as I smiled at her, I looked slightly to her left and saw one of the popular guys, Gideon, sitting next to her, it was no secret that he had a thing for her, though she had always turned him down, guess Magnus was on the case.

"Guess you two will just have to sit next to each other," Magnus states, gesturing to a pair of empty seats, I twinkle in his eye. Will grins sexily at me, and I quietly groan. Today will be an interesting day.

**Authors Note: **Thanks for the reviews and comments, I'm glad I got Wills personality on the spot in that chapter, is this the same? Also thanks for telling me regarding Tessa, I agree that she doesn't sound exactly the same as in the book, but I believe that in her current situation she will be more shy etc, but I will make her more like in the books when speaking with Will and everyone else, though I think she will stay the same when interacting with Nate.

Also if you are wondering what Tessa's outfit looks like I will post it on my account so go and check it out! :)

Now question time! :)

1. Do you think Mortmain should be the pe teacher or math teacher? I am going to have a pe teacher anyway so if not who should they be?

2. Have you ever had to show around a new kid and if so where they as cocky as Will? I know I haven't but then again Ive never met someone quiet like Will.

Have a good day and hopefully I will update over the next few days, though at most it will be a week :)

**Ciao **


	5. Chapter 5

From This Day On

Previously:

"Guess you two will just have to sit next to each other," Magnus states, gesturing to a pair of empty seats, I twinkle in his eye. Will grins sexily at me, and I quietly groan. Today will be an interesting day.

Chapter Five

I slide into my seat, dropping my books and pencil case onto the table with a dull thud, causing dust particles to float into the air all around me. I catch myself watching Will out of the corner of my eye as he sits gracefully and soundlessly in his seat facing out the window, not paying attention. I brush my hair away from my face, letting it fall behind my shoulder just as the smell of David Beckham aftershave swirls around me. It takes me a minute to realise that the cause of the smell is sitting next to me. I shake my head, questioning how he can become so much more attractive, just by smelling amazing. I've always been a sucker for that particular brand of aftershave and have often found myself spritzing the testers on my arm at shopping centres. I pull my sleeves down so they reach my wrists and rest my hand on the side of my head, lightly tapping my fingers on the desk.

"This term, each class will be studying a certain book from the 1800's," Magnus says from where he's standing in front of the class, "For the last month of this term, the whole school will be dressing up in clothing from that era. Thats in three weeks, so you'd better start preparing." The class groans in annoyance as we hear the new information. I watch as each pair turns to one another to discuss what we'd just heard, and as if on cue, Will turns to look at me. I simply stare into his bright blue eyes not saying anything. After a moment I shift my gaze back to the front of the room.

I watch as Magnus lifts up his arm, calling for silence, "After careful deliberation, I have decided that because you are the top class of Year 11, the book we're going to study will be out of the curriculum. I have received permission from the board for this particular book. We will be reading 'A Tale of Two Cities." This sparks my interest and I sit up straighter to listen to what he has to say. I haven't told anyone, but A Tale of Two Cities is one of my favorite books. I practically jump out of my chair when I feel a light movement of a foot running lightly up my leg. I turn to see Will with his chin in his hand looking innocently across the room, only a slight smirk playing on his face. I glare at him for a few seconds before turning back to the front.

"Shit book," I hear Will mutter a few minutes later, I turn to see him glowering at Magnus.

I look at him and cross my arms over my chest. His eyes enlarge a fraction when I turn my body to face him,"I can't decide whether I should be shocked that you read, or offended by what you just said."

He raises an eyebrow at me, taking in my expression before replying, "Sydney Carton was a worthless man, who knew he was worthless. And still, however far down he tried to sink his soul, there was always some part of him capable of great action. What is it he says to Lucie Manette? That though he is weak, he can still burn?" Will's words shock me into silence."Plus he was a dissipated alcoholic," he adds wiggling his eyebrows at me, smirking now to show he was no longer being serious.

I, who have read A Tale of Two Cities more times that I can count, now whisper, "'And yet I have had the weakness, and have still the weakness, to wish you to know with what a sudden mastery you kindled me, head of ashes that I am, into fire.'" I hesitate before adding, "But that was because he loved her."

"Yes," Will answers, "He loved her enough to know she was better off without him," with that he turns back to the front, ignoring my stares of astonishment. Only now do I notice that the whole class had quieted down and are listening to our conversation, I look over in embarrassment and see Magnus watching me. He's smirking with raised eyebrows.

The bell rings soon after and I stand up, grab my books and heft them up into my arms quickly. I stifle a gasp as I hit my hip on the side of the table, right where a large bruise is.

"Oh, I forgot to mention," Magnus calls out before anyone could make it out of the room, "You will be doing an assignment in pairs, and your partner is the person you were sitting next to today," He says it with a bright, innocent smile and he hands out the information as we walk through the door. I flinch as someone bends down and whispers in my ear.

"My place or yours?" He asks seductively, putting a hand on my waist to pull me towards him gently, almost as if he knows that I have injuries. My breath catches as his lips brush my ear and I glower at him, looking into his blue eyes, which have darkened slightly. I pull myself out of his grasp, and watch as he pouts innocently, as if his toy had been taken away from him.

"In your dreams," I answer with a glare. He reaches for me again and I hastily break away from his persistent grasp, shivering slightly as his fingers brush my skin.

"That's where you'll be babe, though not wearing as much clothing," He declares biting his lip sexily, making me blush a bit as I shove past him out of the room, trying to ignore his remark.

Classes come and go and I carefully avoid Will, making sure to hang out with Sophie and some of my other friends, most of which are swooning over him. The exception being Sophie and myself.

Last period comes around quickly and I make my way through the busy halls. I need to get my clothes for PE. I quickly twirl my combination into my lock and pull the locker open, shoving my books and exchanging it for my bag that held my PE clothes. I slam my locker shut and take a quick step back seeing a body leaning up against the side of the lockers.

"How do you know him?" Sophie questions, regarding Will, as she stands up straight, her PE bag in her arm. I sigh knowing this was going to happen even though I did not want it.

"His family came in on Saturday to pick up keys for a house, turns out he lives next door to me. I ran into him in the park late Saturday night," I respond with a shrug as we make our way to the indoor basket ball courts that had adjoining change rooms.

"I don't like him, just keep your distance he seems a bit of a jerk and player," Sophie replies as she looks at me warily. I just nod as we walk into the changing room.

We quickly get changed and I can't help notice the smell of many different deodorants swirling around me. I walk out of the changing room and see Sophie wearing a pair of black yoga pants and a grey loose-fitting shirt with peach strips running down the side. A blue sports bra is showing through her shirt a little, and she ties her hair up to keep it out of her face, letting a few hairs hang loose. I, on the other hand, am dressing in a pair of black, three quarter length tights and a pink long sleeve Lorna Jane shirt with a yellow sports bra underneath. I quickly braid my hair down my back with a few strands falling out to frame my face. Most of the girls are dressed similarly to Sophie and I, and the boys are mostly in basket ball shorts and singlet tops. My eyes unwillingly slide over Will. He is chatting with some boys over the other side of the court. He's dressed in grey shorts with a white singlet top with New York City printed on the front. He locks eyes with me and smirks, causing me to quickly look away, blushing slightly from being caught.

"All right kids, today we will be playing Volleyball. Split yourselves into two teams and we'll get started," Mr Lightwood's voice comes booming across the court as he emerges from the PE office. He looked similar to his son Gideon, but that's where the similarities stop. Benedict is mean and ruthless. He doesn't care if he hurts your feelings, and in some cases he tries to. He is very demanding and treats girls with little or no respect, always holding boys above them. Gideon, on the other hand, is kind and gentle; he never gets into fights and is always the peace maker. Benedict is always really tough on Gideon, especially since they were father and son. It's cruel, really.

We sort ourselves into two teams and set up the nets. I'm trying to tie one side of it to the pole, but I'm not quiet tall enough. I'm on my tippy toes, reaching up to try and hook it through the metal hole.

"Here let me help you," I feel someone brush up behind me, then see a pair of fingers encircle mine reaching up and fixing the problem. I quickly turn around to face an extremely close Will, who is looking down at me with his startling blue eyes.

"You really need to stop doing that," I say, crossing my arms, not able to take a step back as the Volleyball pole is directly behind me.

"I was just trying to help," He responds, looking at me innocently.

I roll my eyes and duck under the net, away from him. I don't realise that he's following me because he's on the same team.

Our game starts off slow with just simple shots and passes, though soon we become more competitive and we're all lost in the game and don't notice the time passing. For a moment I stand back and survey the room, watching as everyone plays. They're being fairly rough. I notice that Gideon is flirting with Sophie and I can't help but smile. Slowly my eyes wander and come to settle on Will, who is standing next to me, his eyes focused on the ball. I watch as his muscles ripple under his singlet and his head moves, following the ball. Suddenly his eyes are on me, and they widen in fear. The last thing I see is his mouth opening to call something out, and a flash of white.

**Authors Note: **Soooooo sorry I wasnt able to upload last week, I had some family issues and was not able to write. Hope this chapter is alright, I'm glad you like my clothing choice :) This is pretty much just a fill chapter but meh

Oh and sorry I did Benedict as the teacher but I thought it suited him so yeah. I will post soon :) Have a good week


	6. Chapter 6

From This Day On

Previously:

Suddenly his eyes are on me, and they widen in fear. The last thing I see is his mouth opening to call something out, and a flash of white.

Chapter 6

The floor is hard and cold, it feels almost as if my shirt has ridden up, allowing my skin to touch the floor. In the back of my mind I think about fixing it, in order to keep my bruises and scars a secret. I almost try but it feels as though a cloud has passed through my body, rendering it unresponsive to my wishes.

"Tessa!" I hear a voice floating around in the back of my mind. I want to tell them to go away, I need sleep.

"Tess!" I hear it more urgently, a deep voice that sounds oddly familiar. I feel the brush of fingertips run down my chin to rest on my throat, looking for a pulse. I feel the same ghost fingertips slide under my body, hoisting my up into a pair of arms. I'm being carried, and I sense comfort in the steady heartbeat of my carrier. I let the darkness roll over me, and sense no more.

The next time I gain consciousness, I hear the slight mutterings of two people talking next to me. Keeping my eyes closed, trying to block out the pain, and listen to what they have to say.

"She appears to have sustained injuries prior to playing Volleyball. When the ball hit her head, the sudden trauma must have been too much for her body to handle on top of her previous injuries. Her brain engaged in a safety mechanism which knocked her unconscious, so that her body had time to heal. It appears that the bruises are covering most of her body, but mainly area's that are easily concealed. I suspect she might also have a broken rib. The colourings of the bruises show that while some are still fresh, others have had time to slowly heal. I believe that some are probably from the last couple of weeks before school started," I listen to the soft female voice as she describes what happened. She's spot on with her assumptions, but I don't know the extent of her knowledge. My heart beats faster as I think of what would happen if they found out it was Nate's doing.

My eyes flutter open and I take in my surroundings. I'm sitting on a white mattress with a scratchy blanket resting over me; there are white wash walls in the small room, and the scent of antiseptic makes me scrunch up my nose. I assume that I'm in the medical wing at school. To my left I see a lady dressed in what looks like a white coat, I recognise her as the school nurse, matching her voice to the one that was speaking before. To her right stands the school principle Josiah Wayland. His blond hair is combed back from his scalp in a way that only old people can pull off. His blue eyes bore into me and I can't help but flinch under his gaze. I look away sheepishly and glance towards the door which has a window in the centre. My eyes lock onto some black messy hair that is visible through the window. I frown, knowing exactly who it is. I stare nervously, wondering if he'd heard what the nurse had said.

Without looking at her, I ask the nurse, "What happened?" I want to know how I ended up here.

"Well you took a nasty hit on the head from a volleyball and got knocked out. One of your class mates carried you here so I could check on you. You seem to be fine, no signs of concussion and I made sure your injuries were treated." She hinted, letting me know that she had looked after my bruises. I couldn't help but smile slightly, feeling that she might understand. She hands me a bottle of pills and raises a single, sculptured eyebrow. "This is if you are in any pain, just take one every 6 hours but only if they're needed." I open the bottle to see that it's full. I can't help but wonder why she was doing this. All the while, Josiah watches me with a calculating look before walking out the door without a backward glance, only stopping and staring questionably at Will who is standing at the door. Will looks back at him, and Josiah walks off.

I heave myself out of the bed, feeling the tightness of bandages under my shirt, realizing that the nurse has probably seen the extent of what Nate has done.

"Thank you," I say quietly, slowly starting to head towards the door.

"Wait," She calls out walking quickly over to me. She hands me a tube of cream and fresh bandages and I look at her questioningly.

"That's in case the bandages need changing, and if anything gets any worse just come here and I will be more than happy to help," she declares before adding in a hushed tone, "Your secret is safe with me." I nod gratefully and open the door heading out with only one backward glance.

I look at my watch as I walk, checking to see that school has finished. Using my peripheral vision, I see that Will had walked up next to me. I look up at him, cocking my eyebrows as I do so.

"Thought you might want to thank your knight in shining armour," He decides to mention, puffing out his chest as he smirks down at me.

I roll my eyes before responding sarcastically, "Oh how will I ever repay you?" I say it in a high girly voice, clutching my hand over my chest as if it was aching, all awhile trying to hold in a smirk as we walk down the empty halls, heading in the direction of my locker.

He frowns slightly, as if deep in thought, trying to hide a smirk while crossing one arm over his chest and resting the other on his cheek as if in a thinking position. I can't help but let a small smile escape from under my facade because of this.

"Hmmmmmm," He says, tapping his finger lightly on his plush, red lips. He looks over at me for a minute before I see his eyes sparkle with mischief.

"I think," He starts to say as I reach my locker, I twirl my combination on my lock, unlocking it whilst watching out of the corner of my eye as he leans up against the lockers next to mine,"You owe me."

I look over at him with a disbelieving expression, I hoist my now full bag onto my shoulder, cross my arms and face him.

"Oh really? And to what do I have to owe?" I ask, slamming my locker closed as we head back down the winding halls to the front of the school, his backpack already on his shoulder.

"You'll just have to wait and see," Will whispers mysteriously, wiggling his eyebrows seductively and bitting his lip. I roll my eyes at him and exit the school, walking down the path that leads to home. I notice Will is still walking along side me so I turn my head, looking at him questioningly.

He just shrugs, "Jem grew tired with Jessamine's whining and drove her home. So I'm walking with you." I nod in acknowledgement.

As we walk in a comfortable silence I cast a glance around us. It is approximately 4.30pm and is starting to get quite chilly. I still have my P.E. clothes on, so I fish out the spare jacket from my bag and sling it over my shoulders in order to try and stop the cold from rushing through my body. I notice that Will hadn't gotten changed either, and by the looks of things, he was cold. I shake my head and pull out my scarf to hand to him. He looks at it, his eyebrows raise as he eyes the scarf in my hand. He shrugs and ties it around his neck.

Will smirks and poses with his hip jutting out to the side, hand resting on his hip with the other under his chin.

"How do I look?" He asks, fluttering his eyelashes at me with a wolfish grin.

I couldn't help but let out a small laugh at his pose, "Fit to meet the Queen," I respond airily, as we continue down our street.

He points at me with a gasp and a shocked expression on his face, I look at him confused, "She laughs!" He exclaims. I look at him, my eyebrows raised above the hairline as I shake my head at him. By now I notice that we're standing in front of my house.

"Can I have my scarf back now?" I ask him, holding my hand out for him to hand it over. He clutches it tight, not releasing it from around his neck.

"No. It suits me much better, so I shall keep it." He declares with a nod before walking away. Before I can respond he is in his house.

"But it's my favourite," I say to the empty air, letting my arm fall to my side as I make my way up to my house with a sigh.

I open the door of my house with a loud creek, it is eerily quiet and I feel a slight shiver run down my spine as I close the door quietly behind me and pad down the hallway towards my room. I pass the kitchen and am shocked by what I see. Nate is standing by the sink, sharpening the kitchen knives.

"Hey Tessie, how was your walk?" Nat asks, gesturing for me to take a seat at the table. I look at him hesitantly before dropping my bag on the floor and taking careful steps to the table and sitting down.

"It was alright," I respond looking at him carefully as he made his way over to where I sit. He stands on the other side of the table, the light 'shing' of the blade crossing the sharpening tool resounds throughout the room.

"I heard you had a nasty fall today," He states, still smiling innocently. I look at him my eyes widening nervously as I fold my arms on the table.

"They said you had some bruises on you," He adds, cocking his head to the side. Before I knew what was happening, he drops the sharpening tool and grabs my left wrist and pulls it across the table, stretching it out before him, palm up. My body slams into the edge of the table and my shoulder is almost dislocated when I almost fall out of my chair.

"Did you tell anyone? The nurse seemed awfully suspicious," He snarls, pulling my arm tighter and pushing the sleeve up to my elbow. I can't help but let out a squeak of pain.

I shake my head adamantly, "I swear I didn't tell anyone! Please don't hurt me!" I yell out as he slowly draws the knife closer to my outstretched wrist.

"I don't believe you," He says simply.

"No. No, no, no, no," I scream out, trying with all my might to wrench my arm out of his grasp as he plunges the knife in my skin slowly. The razor hot pain sears through my body and I can't help but let out another heart-wrenching scream.

I try moving with all my might and he growls at me to stop trying. He holds my arm in place and slowly draws a long, red line down my otherwise clear skin. It run from the divot of my elbow to my wrist, I suspect I will probably need stitches, but knew I will never get them.

Nate releases my arm after the cut was complete. He stares for a moment, taking in his 'handy work', before standing up straight and dropping the knife into the sink and walking off without another word.

I'm sobbing now, clutching my arm to my chest as I rush into the bathroom, grabbing my bag as I go. I lock the door behind me with my good arm and turn the tap on. I open the cupboards, searching blindly for cotton balls and disinfectant. I try to twist the cap off the disinfectant while still hugging my arm to my chest, my shirt and bra are now coated in blood. I sit down on top of the toilet seat, holding out my arm to assess the injury. I rub my eyes, trying to rid them of tears. I shakily pour some disinfectant on top of a cotton ball, not caring that it spills everywhere, pooling on the floor and dripping down the cupboard doors.

I clench my teeth, preparing myself for the onslaught of pain that I was about to experience.

I quickly clean the wound and use some of the cream that the nurse gave me, before lightly wrapping my arm in a bandage. Even after wrapping it, there is already a light pink line running down the bandage, showing that it is still bleeding and probably not going stop for a while. I hug my arm to my chest and grab my bag. Unlocking the door, I head out of the bathroom not bothering to clean up. I listen for a moment and hear the slight roar of Nate's car as he drives out the driveway, most likely going to some gambling get together.

I breathe a sigh of relief, thankful that he will not be home tonight; I don't think I would be able to handle another round of pain. I make my way down to my room, taking comfort in the quietness of the house. I open my room with a shudder caused by a gust of wind that rushes to me from the open window. I drop my bag next to the door and slowly pad across the room to my window, planning on just shutting the window and going to sleep. Then I see Will leaning halfway out his window, close to falling out.

His eyes lock with mine, startling blue against stormy grey, and he gives me a worried smile.

"Hey did you hear that scream—," He starts to say before shuddering to a stop, his eyes traveling down my body, only now do I realize that I have not changed out of my blood splattered shirt, and my arm is still hugged my chest.

"I can explain-," I start to say but the look he gives me forces my mouth to shut.

"I'm coming over," He growls and before I utter a 'no' he rushes out of the door. I lean my head against my window sill for a moment before walking out my room, knowing he will be at my door step in a moment.

I hear a knocking resound thought the house, making me flinch. I place my hand on the door, breathing in a deep breath before turning it and poking my head out the door, not letting him in.

"Look, I'm fine really, I fixed it up and–," I start to say but he reaches out and grabs my good hand, dragging me out the door. I'm only just able to close the door behind me.

I struggle to get out of his grip, trying to dig my feet into the ground. He only glares at me and drags me up the steps into his house.

"CHARLOTTE!" I hear him yell out. I hear the hurried steps of someone rushing down a hallway and slowly Charlotte becomes visible. Her eyes widen at the sight of me, but her face also softens. Will reluctantly lets me go, and Charlotte approaches me like I'm an injured animal.

My eyes search nervously for an escape route. I take in the décor of the house and see that it is set in a French provincial theme. Filled with soft coffee colors and dark wood furniture. There house is bigger than mine, and more spacious with tall ceilings that seem as though they go on for forever. I can see books scattered around the main room. Somehow this made me feel slightly safer.

"Hi there, Tessa, is it?" Charlotte says in a quiet voice, snapping me out of my thoughts, I nod as she had reaches my side, carefully maneuvering me and walking me down the hallway. I feel the need to escape leave me, and I now feel completely emotionally drained. I follow her quiet commands as she sets me down on a hight stool in the kitchen.

"Will, fetch my supplies," She calls at Will who is standing warily at the door. He quickly moves out of sight.

She turns back to me with a confident smile, "Now show me your arm so I can have a look at it," I hesitate, not wanting anyone, especially a stranger, to touch me.

She looks at me kindly, "I'm a surgeon so trust me I know what I am doing," She gently pries my arm from my chest, lightly unwrapping the bandage that is already soaked with blood. I hear her pull in a sharp breath, and she looks at me confused.

"How did this happen?" She asks, just as Will walks back through the door with an opaque black bag that is half open, I can see bandages almost spilling out of it. He looks at my arm and stops momentarily, his blue eyes darkening upon seeing the long red line running down my arm. I look anywhere except at him, embarrassed that he has to see this. He slowly shuffles over to Charlotte, handing her the bag and sitting down next to me. I can't look him in the eyes, so I keep my head down.

"I, uh, tripped," I mutter out the lame excuse, flinching, and waiting to be berated for lying. I peek out under my eyelashes and see Charlotte exchanging a look with Will. After locking eyes with him she looks back at me and smiles sweetly.

"Well, I will just get this fixed so you can have a shower and then I will bandage it afterwards," She informs me, "Okay, so first I will assess how much blood you're still losing, so that I can determine how deep it is and whether or not you will need stiches." She carefully lays out my arm. I watch her lean over it and slightly prod it with her long fingers. I watched her in fascination as she explains what she is doing.

"First I'm going to soak it in disinfectant, so there's no chance that it will get infected. This specific disinfectant has numbing qualities so when I stich up the wound, you wont feel a thing." Her eyes are focused on my arm, and she reaches blindly behind her to pull out an unknown liquid and a cleaning cloth. I flinch, biting my lip as she starts to clean the wound. At first it hurts, but slowly the numbing qualities begin to do their work.

"I am going to start with the end closest to me, and sew away from myself. This way, even if the disinfectant didn't have the numbing effect the edge of the wound becomes numb and it wont cause you any discomfort. I am inserting the needle downwards through the sub-dermal layer of the skin. I need to level off the needle and venture through the wound and to the adjacent wall of the wound." She explains everything as she goes.

"Now that I am across the other side of the wound, I need to return the needle to the skins surface through the sub-dermal layers of skin. Though I have to be careful that I need to get the needle deep enough in the wound so that I don't tear your skin and cause further harm," She quickly and efficiently finishes the stitches, tying it off with a neat knot. This had taken about 15 minutes in total and I had watched in silence, not helping but feel Will's presence as he leaned over me and watched Charlotte work.

"Okay, now I am showing you to the bathroom and helping you change out of those clothes so you can have a shower, then I will put a cream over the top and wrap it in a bandage," Charlotte announces. She helps me up from my chair and shoots a pointed look at Will as we make our way down the hall.

She takes me into the bathroom and helps take off my shirt, not questioning why I had bruises coloring my body. She leaves me alone so I can have a shower and I continue to question why she is being so nice to me. I hop out later only to see that she had left a little pile of clothes on the sink, fresh jeans, underclothes and a crisp white shirt that has three-quarter sleeves. I clumsily get dressed, my hair dripped down my back and I noticed that Charlotte had taken my other cloths. I cautiously open the door and look out, seeing no one in sight. Never had I thought I could get lost in a house before.

I slowly walk down the hallway the way I came with Charlotte. My eyes aren't able to stop taking in the way this house is made. I walk past a series of doors and notice one door has been left slightly ajar, I can't help my curiosity and open it further. I can't believe my eyes.

The library is circular, with the illusion of a ceiling that tapers to a point, as if it had been built inside a tower. The walls are lined with books, the shelves so high they touch the ceiling and I can't help but wonder how you would reach the top shelves. Every shelf is filled. There are books bound in leather and velvet, clasped with sturdy-looking locks and hinges made of brass and silver, and books that look like they were freshly printed, like the were bought off the shelves this morning, and some of their spines were studded with dully glowing jewels and illuminated with gold script. They look worn in a way that made it clear that these books are not just old but are well-used, and have been loved.

The floor is polished wood, inlaid with chips of glass and marble. The inlay formed a pattern that I can't quite decipher—it might be the constellations, or even a map of the world.

In the center of the room sat a magnificent desk. It is carved from a single slab of wood, a great, heavy piece of oak that gleams with the dull shine of years. Piled onto the desk is piles of books that don't seem to have anywhere else to go yet, almost covering the whole of the desk.

"A book lover, just as I suspected," I hear from behind the books, only now squinting I can see Will sitting behind a particularly largely bound book in his hand, his hair messy as if he was running his hands through it constantly, his eyes peeking up from under his lashes.

"Oh I'm sorry, I got lost. This place is huge," I respond, still not drawing my eyes away from the books. If I had to describe heaven, this would be it.

"Come on I'll show you where Charlotte is so you can get that bandaged," He says standing up, but not before grabbing the thickly bound books he was reading before and sliding it under his arm. He leads me out of the library but I can't help but look back one more time as the doors close. He walks swiftly and quietly down the house in a comfortable silence only broken once when we pass a particularly pink door with the sounds of One Direction playing through the crack. I frown in annoyance and look at Will, his expression mirrored mine and I can't help but smile a little.

"Jessamine is a typical teenage girl who has this weird obsession with Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber. Don't ask me how I know their names, she does not shut up about them at dinner," He comments with a smirk and slightly nudges me with his side as we walked down the hallway, I shake my head, playfully glaring at him.

We make it back to the kitchen where Charlotte is sitting, reading a magazine on home décor, she looks up and smiles at me, letting me know that my clothes were too dirty, so she simply chucked them out. I nod and thank her, and Will walks me out back to my house. Just as I am about to walk up my steps, he stops me with a light touch on my arm, I flinch involuntarily and can't help but see the slight hurt in his eyes.

"What happened?" He asks, his eyes bore into mine. I look away nervously.

"I told you already," I say, "I tripped," I watch the street, feeling scared that Nate would come roaring down the street and catch me fraternizing with the neighbors. I watch as his eyes narrow and he crosses his arms over his nicely muscled chest.

"Then how come I heard you yell out 'no' a bunch of times before that horrible scream. And you're covered in bruises already?" He questions me and my eyes open wide. He'd heard me yell out, and knew about the bruises.

I rub my good hand over my face, feeling tired because it is around 10pm. I just want to crawl into bed.

"I'm fine, really," I tell him warily watching his calculating look.

"Good night Will," I finish, stopping him before he could continue to question me. He sighs and decides to let it go, though I knew he wouldn't stop.

"Good night Tess," He responds and I take one last look at him before walking into my house, I walk down my hallways, not helping but notice how much smaller my house is compared to theirs. I fall into my bed, still dressed in the clothes from Charlotte, and fall asleep.

In the house across from mine, a similarly aged boy stayed up late talking to his adoptive mother about what they had experienced that afternoon, and how they would deal with it.

**Authors Note:** Hey guys, sorry I didn't post sooner, I just got allyrose0209's review just as I was adding the chapter. :)

Hopefully this is long enough for you to last a week, I will be posting once every week hopefully so just be patient if it isn't posted straight away.

Hope you all had a great weekend, this week is the last week of school for me until the holidays so hopefully I will be able to write more chapters for you guys.

How did this chapter sound? I thought it would make it more realistic if I described what Charlotte was doing to fix Tessa and thought it would add more depth.

Have a good week :)

**Ciao**


	7. Chapter 7

From This Day On

Previously:

"Good night Tess," He responds and I take one last look at him before walking into my house, I walk down my hallways, not helping but notice how much smaller my house is compared to theirs. I fall into my bed, still dressed in the clothes from Charlotte, and fall asleep.

In the house across from mine, a similarly aged boy stayed up late talking to his adoptive mother about what they had experienced that afternoon, and how they would deal with it.

Chapter 7

I rush through the halls, almost spilling two overflowing coffees as I skid to a stop in front of my locker. I rip open my locker, quickly grabbing my English books and slamming it closed again. As I rush through the empty hallways towards the English room I take a sip from one of the coffees to make sure that it did not spill down my outfit. I slide down the last couple of meters in front of the English room where Magnus has already started class and quickly pat down my windswept hair as I take a deep breath before opening the class-room door. I walk over to where Magnus was sitting and handed him his coffee.

"Double shot venti soy hazelnut vanilla cinnamon white mocha with an extra shot of espresso and caramel?" Magnus' questions, with the raise of an eyebrow.

"And whipped cream," I reply and he gives me a bright smile, gesturing for me to take a seat, letting me know that we were reading a book of our choice for the period. It has been two weeks since the start of term and all I needed to do was pick up my 1800's themed clothing as our month of 'dressing up' was coming up in just a week. Magnus has been nagging our class all week and Sophie and I had decided to go pick up our dresses this afternoon.

I walk over to my seat with a yawn, dropping my books on the table as I looked around. Most girls were reading books by the latest authors, John Green and Stephanie Myer, while the guys had dozens of comics littering their desks. I look at Will who is staring at me curiously.

"Oh right you're new," I say rubbing my make-up free, "When you are late for English he doesn't really care that much as long as you bring him something to eat or drink he lets you off the hook." I tell him, taking in his appearance. He was wearing a pair of black jeans and a black tight fitting long sleeve shirt with the top couple of buttons undone to give it the illusion of a 'v'. Over the top he had a black hoody that stuck to his muscled arms like a second skin, emphasizing his already amazing muscles. I blink at him a couple of times trying to process my sleep-deprived thoughts.

"You wear a lot of black," I announce, organizing my desk into a neat pile.

"And you like to be very _modest_," Will responds quietly as he checks out my outfit. I am wearing light blue jeans with the white rips running down my legs; on my top half I wore a white singlet top that had extra bits of fabric hanging loosely around the bodice to give it the effect that it had more layers. I also wore a green parker jacket over the top and a white beanie on my head with my hair down my shoulders in loose waves. Wrapped intricately around my neck was a peach coloured scarf

I raise my eyebrows at him half heartedly, "I get cold," I respond meekly, opening my book.

"Why were you late?" He questions sticking his head back into his book to make it look like he was actually reading. I watch him warily to gauge his reaction. I couldn't tell if he really knew or not but this morning Nate had stormed into my room just as I was about to leave in a fit of anger. He slapped me across the face not even asking me if I had done something, not even bothering to stop him I just took the beating, hoping he would just stop after several minutes. He continued until I was just a pile on the floor and then just stormed out, yelling how worthless I was and how it was all my fault, not even bothering to lower his voice.

I snap out of my thoughts before responding, "Oh, I slept through my alarm," I tell him with a shrug, turning to the front also.

"I heard you get up this morning, I even saw you through the window before you closed it," He responds, turning to look at me questionably. I freeze but try to play it off by taking a sip of my coffee as I turn to the current novel in my hands, trying to stop them from shaking lightly. I had already finished the Great Gatsby 2 days after I had started it and was planning to meet up with Sophie this weekend to watch the new Leonardo DiCaprio movie. The book that had my nose currently buried in it had a cover of rich red with an intricate design of an 'A' over the front cover. It was none other than 'The Scarlet Letter'.

"Is that a bruise on your face?" He asks his voice barely above a whisper. He raises his hand to my face to have a better look. I unconsciously flinch from him, closing my eyes and raising my shoulders, tilting my face away from him. He watches my reaction with a frown as I slowly open my eyes again, not moving his hand from its out held position.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Will tells me quietly and I stay very still as he lifts his hand up and brushed away some of my hair that had fallen into my eyes and uncovering my bruised cheeks. His touch was soft and tender; a gentle brushing of the skin so soft that I knew no person would be able to replicate it. It was not sensual, seductive or rough like I had pictured him to be like, but rather light, gentle, affectionate and innocent.

"See," He whispers as I watch him warily as he tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. He pulls away slowly watching me all awhile before turning back to his book. I noticed the book in his hands was 'Persuader' by Lee Child, the target watching me accusingly as I had distracted his reader.

What just happened? I question as I turn my head back into the book, losing my mind into the words of Nathaniel Hawthorne. As I flicked the pages of my book I felt the familiar sense of peace overcome me as I fell into the plot. I had already read this book twice and new it front to back, like the back of my hand.

"It is a curious subject of observation and inquiry, whether hatred and love is not the same thing at bottom. Each, in its utmost development, supposes a high degree of intimacy and heart-knowledge; each renders one individual dependent for the food of his affections and spiritual life upon another; each leaves the passionate lover, or the no less passionate hater, forlorn and desolate by the withdrawal of his object," I hear a whisper quote The Scarlett Letter from next to me. I turn my head across and watch as Will continued to read, my mouth agape seeing the slight hint of a smirk grace is face. I raise my eyebrows before leaning closer to him, almost as if I was truly seeing him for the first time.

"What did you say?" I question, already knowing the answer though I still needed him to confirm it.

"You heard me," He mutters back, not breaking eye contact from him book. I take a closer look at his novel, seeing where he was up to and thinking for a moment before responding.

"I don't care about the little guy. I just hate the big guy. I hate big smug people who think they can get away with things," I quote knowing that he was only a few pages after the exact same spot where that specific excerpt was from, watching the smirk that has graced his face drop he stares at me. I give him a lopsided grin, winking slyly before turning back to my book to finish all that I had left.

"Oh would you two stop flirting?" I hear an annoyed voice loudly whisper behind me. I flush a deep red turning around to see it was Gabriel Lightwood. His sharp features turned down in annoyance as he runs his fingers through his tousled brown hair, his watchful expression takes in my blushed appearance with his large, emerald green eyes. I blush a deeper red as wiggles his eyebrows at me in a flirtatious way as I hastily turned back to my book.

"Oh shut up Lightworm, no one cares what you think, you're just a nuisance to the whole class," Will responds, glaring harshly at Gabriel, I watch them in amusement, wondering what they had done to each other to already hate each other with such vehement.

"Tessa, you should stop talking to him. This _filth_ will only drag you down. Find someone else to be friends with. No one expects _him_ to live past nineteen, and no one will be sorry to see him go, either-" Gabriel whisper-shouts at me. I look at him in shock, as I process what he had just said. I glare at him before responding.

"What a thing to say! Telling someone you wouldn't be sorry if they died! It's inexcusable!" I utter with such disgust he flinches, almost looking sorry.

"P-pardon me?" Gabriel questions, looking almost confused. I quietly hear Will scoff, but a quick look in his direction tell him to stop laughing and look serious.

"I think you owe Will an apology." I respond to him and watch as Gabriel looks at me agape. I see out of the corner of my eye that Will can barely contain his smirk. I purse my lips and glare at Gabriel.

"I," Gabriel starts, "would rather have my entrailes yanked out and tied in a knot in front of my own eyes than apologize to such a worm," He states, looking particularly proud of himself of such a clever come back.

I look at him in shock before responding to his comment with a quick sharp slap across his face. I hear Will burst out laughing then, not being able to withhold his mirth. Before anyone could respond, the bell went. I quickly and efficiently grabbed my books and walked out of the classroom without another word. I saw that Magnus gave me an appraising look and I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief that I had not gotten in trouble. I heard the rushing steps of someone behind me and sighed as Will bounded up next to me. A large grin on his face, holding his hand up for a high five. I look at him, my eyebrows raised in mock disbelief.

"Oh come on, that was amazing," Will declares giving me his goofy grin, walking backwards yet somehow not running into people. I give him a half hearted high five to get him to lay off. Though not helping a small grin grace my face at his comment.

"What period is it?" I question, watching as everyone was walking to their lockers.

"It's recess _dear_," He replies in a slight mocking tone, I just simply role my eyes as I walked over to my locker, twirling my combination as he leant up against the other locker, completely ignoring the huff of the girl whose locker was next to mine. He just simply ignores her. I push all of my stuff into my locker, taking the last gulp of my now cold coffee and grabbing an apple. I slam my locker closed and simply follow him to his locker to wait as he put his stuff away.

I notice that Will was taking a particularly long time in his locker so I couldn't help but open it wider to see that he was crossing something off in a little note pad.

"What's that?" I question, looking over his shoulder.

"This is my bucket list, and you my dear helped my complete something. _Be there to witness someone bitch slap Gabriel across the face._" Will responds before crossing a line through the writing. I look at him disbelievingly and he just shrugs.

He closes his locker now holding out an apple, though this one was green looking at me with a glint in his eye as we made our way to the cafeteria where the rest of our group now sat. Before Will had come to this school I sat with about four girls in a little rectangular table in a far corner. Though now that Will came and decided he _had_ to sit next to me at lunch we now had an even number of about 8 people. In a circle Sophie was sitting next to Gideon, who was sitting next to his friend Adrian. Adrian was sitting next to Jessamine who was sitting next to my friend Lydia. Lydia was sitting next to Jem who had two free spots next to him. I sat down on the other side of Sophie while Will sat between Jem and myself. He instantly turned to Jem, recounting what I had said to Gabriel as the rest of the table listened on, while I quietly ate my apple, willing Will to stop.

"And then Tess here, bitched slapped him so god damn hard that he fell out of his chair!" Will exclaims, making the story that much more 'interesting' while I groaned in annoyance.

"Will that wasn't what happened at all!" I exclaim, jabbing him to try and stop.

"Dear me," He responds. "Such harsh truths so early in the morning cannot be good for the digestion," He declares, throwing an arm into the air in an exuberant way. I roll my eyes and the rest of the group laugh at his antics.

"So Soph, are we still going to go and pick up our dresses today?" I ask her, turning away from the group.

"Oh, I'm sorry, my mum took me last night to pick them up, Sorry," She tells me, I just nod, trying to hid my disappointment.

"That's ok; I'll just go by myself. No worries," I reply giving her a tight smile, though it did not reach my eyes. I turn back to the group and sit there quietly as I watch everyone chat with each other. Quietly eating my apple.

Classes came and went, and the day passed pretty fast for a Monday morning. As the last bell rang for the day I slowly made my way over to my locker. Packing my tote-bag to the brim with homework books and novels I hefted it onto my shoulder, knowing that my back would be out of alignment by the end of the year because of how many books I carried around. I slam my locker closed only to see Wills grinning face behind it. I look at him confused as I turn and walk out of the school, watching as he walked beside me, his backpack slung over one shoulder.

"What are you doing?" I ask him, knowing I wouldn't be able to get rid of him any time soon.

"Why, I am accompanying the young lady to the shops, in order for her to be properly dressed," He responds theatrically, "Also my darling Charlotte ordered me to pick my clothes up too."

I nod, as we walk down the steps of the school, taking a right to pass the car park that leads the way down to the shops. I look over at him as he veers to the car park. I warily follow him as he weaves through the cars. I watch as he grins before stopping in front of a car. My eyes widen and my mouth slightly gapes open, there sitting before me is a sleek black RB-Powered Mustang with its signature twin white stripes running down the length of the car. My eyes flicker between Will and the mustang watching as Will is trying to hold in a smirk at my reaction.

I close my mouth and swallow thickly as I rounded the car to the passenger's side. Not helping my fingers lightly brush the paintwork in awe. I slide in, holding my bag tightly so as not to damage anything. I watch as Will lithely climbs in, pulling out a pair of ray-bans, now covering his wondering eyes.

"So I'm guessing you like the car?" Will questions as he shoves the gear stick into reverse, only now drawing my attention that this car was also manual. He was ticking all the boxes today. I grin at him before responding.

"Like? More like _love_," I reply, emphasizing the love part with a grin. I run my fingers through my hair as I settled into the seat, not helping but smile as the scent of leather surrounds me.

"You drive stick?" I question approvingly as I look over at him, switching quickly through the gears.

"Stick?" Will answers confusingly while looking at me out the corner of his eye.

"Manual," I correct watching as it clicks with him as he nods.

"You Americans with your slang," Will counters with mock disapproval. I huff and slight annoyance but cant help but smirk back at him. Rolling my eyes I watch as he flicks on the radio, blasting the car with music. I cant help but feel comfortable with Will as we quickly make our way to the shops in order for us to pick up our outfits.

**Authors Note: **

Oh my glob guys I am sooo sorry I haven't posted sooner. Don't Worry I haven't stopped this story, I just kind of lost my way for a bit, but don't worry, no matter how long it takes for me to post I wont stop until this is finished. I'm also sorry if in some spots it doesn't make sense, I kind of waffle on and ramble a bit when writing and its hard for me to make sense when I type so fast. I am glad you all like my story and hope you like how Tessa was acting in this chapter (especially dealing with Gabriel (; ), I thought I just had to add that into it. Now this is just a filler and I _might_ have something exiting happen with Will and Tessa, something cute! ;), _hint hint, nudge nudge_

Tell me how this chapter went, I am open for comments and improvements **  
**

Till next time

**Ciao :)**


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